Wearing apparel



April 19, 1988 R. R. PAGANO 3,246,342

WEARING APPAREL Filed Feb. 19, 1964 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR. RALPH R. PAGANO ATTOR NEY April 1'9, 1966 R. R. PAGANO WEARING APPAREL 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Feb. 19, 1964 FIG.8

INVENTOR.

RALPH R. PAGANo ATTORNEY United States Patent O `3,246,342 WEARING APPAREL Ralph R. Pagano, 118 87th St., Brooklyn, N.Y. Filed Feb. 19, 1964, Ser. No. 345,979 1 Claim. (Cl. 2-227) This invention relates to a wearing apparel and, in particular, to an improved apparel construction in the region of the body portion from the waistlne to 'the hi-ps.

Recent trends in the design and construction of wearing apparel, such as s'kirts and trousers, have 'been in the direction of emphasizing slender lines. Generally, such constructions have involved the use of the tapering line. In the case of trousers or slacks, whether worn 'by men or Women, this has been achieved by narrow'ing and tapering the depending leg port-ions down to -the region of the ankles, removing pleats, etc. While such constructions have had a m-arked effect on current wearing apparel design, little has 'been done in the way of producing a slender line effect in the body portion of -the garment in the region bounded by the waistlne and hips without sacrirficing comfort. This has been responsible in large measure for dis'couraging many women from 'wearing slacks.

It is thus an object of my invention to provide an improved wearing apparel construction hav-ing as its purpose to impart a slender appearance to the 'body in the region of the waistlne to the hips.

Another object is lto provide a pair of trousers characterized 'by a construction in the region of the waistlne lto the hips which not only eonfers a slender look to the body but also elastically supports and slenderizes portions of the human ana-tomy such as |the a'bdomen just albove the pel-vic region and/or the anatomy in the region of the buttocks.

A still further object is to provide a wearing apparel construction eharacterized in the region of the waistlne by av droppable front flap portion which facilitates the dressing and undressing of said apparel.

These andl other obfjects will more clearly appear when considered in the light of the following description and the accompanying drawing, wherein:

'F'IGL 1 is a front view perspective of one embodiment of my invention showing the front flap portion at the waistlne in the dropped position;

FIG. 2 is like FIG. 1 except the front flap is shown in the secured up position;

IFIG. 3 depicts a side elevation partially broken away of the embodirnent shown in FIGS. 1 and 2;

'FIG. 4 is a partial front perspective with the front of the trousers removed to show the details of construction in 'the inside of the back portion of the trousers in the region of the waistlne and the buttoc-ks;

'FIG. 5 is a pantial perspective looking from the back side of the trousers with the back side removed showing the details of construction of the inside portion of the front panel of the trousers;

FIG. 6 is a longitudinal section of the back side of the trousers taken along line 6-6 of FIG; 4;

FIG. 7 is a fragmentary longitudinal section of the front side of the trousers taken along line 7 7 of FIG. 5;

|FIG. 8 is an enlarged horizontal section looking from the top taken along line 8-8 of FIG. 4; and

PIG. `9 is an enlarged horizontal section looking from the top taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 5.

I-t will be appreciated that while the novel construction of my invention is illustrated as applied to trousers, it is advantageously useful |for feminine wearing apparel such as skirts, as well as male and female trousers, including knee britches, shorts, jodphurs, slacks and'the like.

In accordance with my invention, I provide an improved body construction for wearing apparel having a 'body por- 3,246,342 Patented Apr. 19, 1966 tion in the region of the waistlne to just below the hips.

Broadly speaking, the body portion comprises a front panel and a rear panel connected together via seams along the sides thereof extendin'g fom the waistlne to below the hips as is commonly employed in the manufacture of trousers. But here the similarity stops in that with regard to the front panel I provide a droppable front flap which commences as part of the waistlne inwardly from the sides thereof in the region near the mid-portion and diverges downwardly 'and outwardly along a line which is connected onv each side thereof (somewhat like a trapezoid) to side plac'kets of the front panel, each side of the droppable front flap terminating outwardly at just below the hips. The advantage of -this construction is that the garment, be it a pair of trousers or the like, can be easily slipped on even though it is designed to ffit the body very snugly, the downwardly diverging lines of the flap having a tendency of impartng a slender appearance to the body.

'In its preferred aspects, an inner front panel of elasticized material or fa'bric is connected to the inside of the front flap 'by means of a seam along the waistlne and along the connecting sides of 'the flap, the elasticized material lbeing free transversely along the bottom of the flap. The width of the elasticized material (to be deser-ibed later) is proportioned to be less than that of the flap so as to provide some tension against the Ibody of the wearer at and above the pelvic region and to add to the slenderizing effect. As a further feature, elasticized material or fabric may be employed as an inner rear panel so as to apply tension across the buttocks of the body 'in further impartng a slenderizin'g effect in keeping with the front flap construction.

Referring to the various figures of the drawing which depict one embodiment of my invention as applied to a garment shown in this case as a set of trousers, FIGS. l and 2 showing a front perspective with the front flap dropped ('FIG. 1). As shown in FIG. 2, the body portion is designated generally by the numeral 10 having depending leg portions 11 and 12. T'he body portion extends from the waistlne 143 to just 'below the hips at about -14L and 14'R and comprises a front -panel 1'5 and a rear panel 16' connected together via seams 17 and 18 along the sides of the garmen't extending from the waistlne to 'below the hips.

The front panel has a droppable flap 19 connected to substantially triangularly shaped side plackets 20 and 21 along lines 22 and 23, for example by means of zippers 24, it being understood that any connecting means may |be employed. As will be noted, the upper edge 25 of the flap forms part of the waistlne and is connected to the other parts of the waistlne by means of Connectable wings 25a and 25b located inwardly of the side extremites of the waist, the sides 22 and 23 of the flap diverging downwardly and outwardly and terminating to just below the hips as at 14L and 14R, respectively. As shown in FIG. 1, the wings are provided with button holes for connection with corresponding buttons on the waistlne. As will be observed from FIG. 2, the diverging lines also help to convey a slender appearance to the garment.

As stated hereinabove, it is preferred that the garment have in combination with the body portion, for example with the flap, an inner panel support of elasticized material or fabric. This is shown by the cross hatching in back of the dropped flap in FIG. 1 and in more detail in FIG. 5 which is a rear view of the front panel with the rear panel removed. Here the inner panel support sewed to the back of the front flap is shown as a kind of girdle construction 26 of elasticized material following the substantially trapezoidal contour of the flap and being sewn thereto as shown along the upper edge of the fiap, the'bottom edge v27*(n'ote lalso 'FIG.'2)` of themi front inner panel support running transversely and freely, that is unconnected, from o'ne side of the front panel to th'elother,v except preferably foran anchoring point 28 slightly belowthehip line'tor approximately two or three inches above the. crotch 29. As shown in FIG. 7,

which is a longitudinal section taken along line 7-7,

grammatically in thencross section of FIG. 9 taken along line 9-9 of FIG. 5. Note that the width of inner panel 26 is shorter than the widthof fiap 19 at the region sectioned. When the garment is worn, the inner front panel stretches and accommodates and supports the abdomen above the pelvic region. This helps in further conveying the appearance of la flat slender look.

In sewing the elasticized material to theback of the front fiap, the amount to-which theelastic material Vis stretched before it is sewn in place varies from the top of the fiap to the bottom. Referring to lFIG.5, the total width Wlof the elastie material near the top of the fiap before it is sewedin place may, for example, be onequarter less than the width of the fiapmaterial, while the width W2 of the elastic materialnear the bottom of the fiap may be one and one-half inches lessthan that of the fiap. Because the width of the flap varies from the top to the bottom, the amount of stretch before sewing is preferably varied accordingly to achieve the desired girdle effect. As a rule of thurnb, the transverse stretch may vary one-eighth of an inch per inch of fiap measured along the sides from the top to the bottom. Thus, assuming. a fiap length of about twelve inches alongthe d'iverging side, the totaltransverse stretch at the bottom before sewing would .be approximately one and one-half inchcs. Putting it another way, thewidth o f elasticized inner panel at the bottom o f the fiap should be about one and one-half inches less than that of the ilap. Thus, by transversely stretching the inner panel from the. top to the bottom, with the stretch increasing substantially proportionately to the width of the fiap, a fairly uniform'tension is assured throughout the inner panel.

With regard to the rear panel, I also prefer thatit have an inner panel of elasticized material or fabric sewn to it in order to support and streamline the body in the general area of the buttocks. Referring to PIG. 4,'V which is a view of the rear` inner panell of the'rear panel of the garment with the front panel cut away, the elasticized material isV indicated in cross hatcheldhlines` the lmaterial being sewn along the top of the waist as` shown by dotted lines 31 and also vertically along the sides 32 and 33', as well as vertically down the"mid-- dle o f the rear panel at 34; The bottomV 35 is similarly unconnected and runs transversely and freely across the garment just below the hips from one side to the other..

In effect, the elasticieduinner rear panel may comprise' two' Sections, one bounded'iby seams 31, 32 and 34 and the other by seams 3]., 33and 34.

The width of the elasticized rear inner panel in the unstretched condition is lessthan that of the rear outer panel to which it is sewn in the stretched condition, the amount `of stretch of the inner panel as sewn being greater where the width of the outer panel is greater vasvde. Asa rule'of thurnb,

will follow the Contour of the body. The rear inner "pariel'hangs slightly away'i'from the' rear outer panel'as' shown in FIG. 6 which 'is a section taken longitudinally aong line 6-6 of FIG. 4. "However, the space is filled out When the garment is worn. FIG. '8 depicts somewhat diagrammatically a horizontalsection taken through line 8-8- of FIG. 4 showing the difference in width between rear inner panel of elasticized material and rear outer panel 15 of the garment, with the two panels joined at seams 32 and 33 at the sides and seam 34 at the middle. i

. By combining a built-in girdle construction with the novel fiap construction provided lby the..'invention in the preferred form .shown in the drawing, the slender look is maximized in the region of the waist to lthe hips. .The novel fiap construction in the front,..par,ticularly where thetrousers are snug fi-tting, allows for e'ase of dressing and undressing. By employing a front g'irdle `construction as described in combination with the flap,. clean lines are assured in the region of the crotch and in the' combination with the rear panel, clean lines are assuredH in the region of the buttocks with bunching-up of material greatly minimized. t

I find that my novel garment construction vis applicable.

to re'gular fabrics .as well as` stretchable `fabrics. For

' example, the outer front. and back panels' including th'e whole garmentmaybe'made of streethablefabric. In

that case, the elasticized girdle 'materialf'may'l'have a?- greater resistance to Vstretch'than the outer panels so as to provide a' main support to lthe body. i Summarizng my invention, I provide a wearing apparel, such as a' pair of trousers, comprising a bodypor-v 'tion in the region of the waistline to just below the hips. wherein I employ an improved body porti-on construction. 'which comprises a front panel and a rear panel connected toge-ther via seams along the sides there'of extending lfrom the waistline to below the |hips, the .front panel beingl f-ormed of a droppable fiap and side plackets, the droppable fiap having a connec-table waist portion at its upper.

edge forrning part of the waistline. lThe'ifiap issomewhat 'trapez-oidal in Shape and is connect'able along each side -sides to the region of the hips., 'In additio'n, the inner panel is further anchored to .the front panelv at a point above thecrotch.

Ina more preferred embodiment,' the rear panel has combined with it an `inner rear panel of elasticized ma- -tenal-whieh is sewnwhile'undertransversetension to' the back `of the rear panel alongthe waistline, down along the'.'sides of vthe body portion of the rear panel and also down the middle of the rear panel from the waistline to the region of therotch. The elasticized material in' both :instances is sewn to provide substantially uniform gripping of the body in a kind of ,girdle construction.

Al'though the present invention has been described in 'conjunction with preferred. emb'odiments, it is to be understood that modifications and' variations maybe resorted. to without departing from'the 'spirit and scope of' t'he invention as those skilled .in the art will readily understand. Such modificati'ons and variations are considered, to bewithin the purvew and scope of the invention and the appended clairn. n

What is cl'aimed is:

In a pair of trousers comprisng a body portion in the region of the waistline to just below the hips and 'having two legs depending therefrom, an improved body portion construction which comprises, a front panel and a rear panel, seems connecting said front and rear panels together along the sides thereof extending from the waistline to below the hips, said front panel being formed of a drop-pable flap and unconcealed side plackets, each of said unconcealed side plackets comprising a substantially triangularly shaped piece having a substantially Vertical edge connected by a seam to and along the sides of the trousers, an edge connected by a seam t-o the waistline, and an edge diverging downwardly and outwardly at `an angle from the waistline and having connecting means therealong for connection to the fla-p, the droppable flap having a connectable Waist portion at itsI upper edge forming part of the waistline, said flap' having connecting means along each side thereof associated with the connecting means of each cor-responding placket, the connecting sides of said flap and said uncon-cealed plackets commencing inwardly from the sides of said trouser in rthe region near the midportion of the waistline and diverging down-wardly and out'wardly together from the waistline and terminating at the sides of the body portion of said apparel, an inner front panel of elasticized material combined with the back of said droppable flap, said inner front panel of elasticized material being sewn under transverse tension to the back of said flap along the waist portion, down along the diverging sides and anchored at a point above the crotch, and an inner rear panel of elasticized material combined with the back of said rear panel, said inner rear panel being sewn while under transverse tension to the back of the rear panel along the waistline, down along .the sides of the rear panel and down the middle of the rear panel from the waistline to t-he region of the crotch, said unconcealed triangular plackets being shaped to follow the contour of the body from the midportion of the waistline whereby to effect a clean slim line in Cooperation with the flap.

References Cited by the Examner UNITED STATES PATENTS 2283,362 5/1942 Hamilton 2 2137 2,361,902 10/1944 Sherman 2 237 2,387,405 10/1945 Nenson 2 227 2,593,795 4/1952 Rhoadset a1. 2- 235 3,o68,871 12/1962 Rapp 128-519 FOREIGN PATENTS 1,102,642 5/1955 France.

ROBERT V. SLOAN, Primary Exa'miner.

JORDAN FRANKLIN, Examiner. 

